# Aalst railway station

Aalst railway station (Dutch: Station Aalst; French: Gare d'Alost) is a railway station in Aalst, East Flanders, Belgium. The station opened on 9 June 1853 and is located on railway lines 50 and 82. The train services are operated by the National Railway Company of Belgium (NMBS/SNCB).

## History

The station originally opened on line 57 (Aalst–Dendermonde–Lokeren) with line 50 opening on 7 April 1855. On 1 June 1876, the station was connected with Zottegem on line 82 and on 12 October 1879, the line 61 to Antwerp opened. Aalst was disconnected from line 61 on 2 June 1957. The connection between Aalst and Dendermonde was closed on 31 May 1964.
Since 2006, the station area has been undergoing a heavy redevelopment. This resulted in a new subway with lifts, new platforms, a new bus station, a new car park, two new covered bicycle parking lots, a newsagent, a bicycle recovery point, a renovated station square and renovated neighbouring streets and project development.

## Architecture

The station building was designed by the architect Jean-Pierre Cluysenaar in 1852 and was officially inaugurated on 6 July 1856 by Crown Prince Leopold, later King Leopold II. The architectural style of the building is a mixture of a medieval castle and a Gothic town hall. The building was erected in Boomse baksteen and bluestone, which is reminiscent of the Tudorgotiek. The two side pavilions and the canopy (which is no longer present) on the platform side were added in 1890. It is the only city station by Jean-Pierre Cluysenaar that still exists.

## Facilities

The station has a buffet restaurant, baggage lockers and free cycle storage. There is a car park for paid parking. There are facilities for people of reduced mobility. There is a De Lijn bus station on the Dokter André Sierensstraat.

## Station layout

The station consists of 2 levels:
* Level 0: main building with ticketing facilities and commercial space, 2 subways
* Level 1: 4 platforms with a total of 7 tracks

## Train services

The station is served by the following services:
* Intercity services (IC-20) Ghent - Aalst - Brussels - Hasselt - Tongeren (weekdays)
* Intercity services (IC-20) Ghent - Aalst - Brussels - Dendermonde - Lokeren (weekends)
* Intercity services (IC-29) Ghent - Aalst - Brussels - Brussels Airport - Leuven - Landen (weekdays)
* Intercity services (IC-29) De Panne - Ghent - Aalst - Brussels - Brussels Airport - Leuven - Landen (weekends)
* Brussels RER services (S4) Aalst - Denderleeuw - Brussels-Luxembourg Etterbeek - Vilvoorde - Mechelen (weekdays)
* Brussels RER services (S6) Aalst - Denderleeuw - Geraardsbergen - Halle - Brussels - Schaarbeek (weekdays)
* Brussels RER services (S10) Aalst - Denderleeuw - Brussels - Dendermonde
| Preceding station | NMBS/SNCB | Following station |
| Ledetowards Gent-Sint-Pieters | IC 20weekdays, except holidays | Denderleeuwtowards Tongeren |
| Ledetowards Gent-Sint-Pieters | IC 20weekends | Denderleeuwtowards Lokeren |
| Ledetowards De Panne | IC 29 | Erembodegemtowards Landen |
| Terminus | S 4weekdays | Erembodegemtowards Mechelen |
| Terminus | S 6weekdays | Denderleeuwtowards Schaarbeek |
| Terminus | S 10 | Erembodegemtowards Dendermonde |

## Gallery

* Frontal view
* Lateral view
* View from inside the station
* View of the platforms and tracks (before renovations)
* View of the tracks
* Place name sign